‘100 days of protests in Venezuela’

In Venezuela, protesters have marked the 100th day of the increasingly violent demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro.

Thousands of people gathered in the capital Caracas to hear opposition figures, who vowed to step up their street protests. This came a day after the Supreme Court granted house arrest to imprisoned opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez in order to ease tensions. The opposition is organizing an unofficial referendum next week on president Maduro’s plan to rewrite the constitution. Venezuela has been grappling with economic crisis following the sharp fall in oil prices since 2015. The protesters blame Maduro for the crisis, but he accuses the United States of orchestrating an economic plot to topple his government.